Heretofore, it has been the practice to form tape springs from a relatively narrow band of material so that the spring fingers extend lengthwise of the material from which they are made. However, this arrangement of the spring fingers severely limited the number of springs per unit of length of the strip material and also resulted in waste and improper location of the pad material.
The springs are advantageously fabricated from a phosphorous bronze band which is spring tempered but which has previously tended to fatigue when flexed transversely of its lengthwise extent. Thus, attempts to make the springs so that they extend transversely of the band from which they are fabricated has produced a number of problems.
Furthermore, existing methods of forming and arranging the tape springs did not lend themselves to easy and automatic installation of the springs into a tape cartridge.
Accordingly, a primary object of this invention is the provision of a method and apparatus for forming from strip materials a plurality of interconnected, padded springs having spring fingers arranged transversely of the lengthwise extent of said strip materials and formed to permit easy severing of the springs from each other prior to installation in a cartridge.
A further object of this invention is the provision of a method, as aforesaid, which can be completely automatic insofar as the movement of the materials and the shaping and separating of the springs are concerned.
Other objects and purposes of this invention will become apparent to persons familiar with this type of equipment upon reading the following descriptive material and examining the accompanying drawings.